THE APPEAL OF IMPERFECTION
Together with his son Sanchir, Jan Kath has opened a new chapter in the iconic Erased series: ERASED ARTWORK is a tribute to tradition, the sensual experience of textile art – and at the same time a radical play with deconstruction.
In the creative process, an abstract and an ornamental pattern merge. This motif is then further alienated, superimposed, blurred. What remains are delicate hints, fragile surfaces, shimmering layers of color – like memories that slowly fade from mind but retain their emotional power.
But the erosion does not only take place on a visual level. The idea of controlled decay can also be experienced haptically. After each carpet has been hand-knotted in the factories in Agra, India, it undergoes an “antique finishing” process developed especially by Jan Kath. Over several weeks, the fibers made of highland wool and silk are deliberately treated with fire and water. In this process, perfection is dissolved and the material is given the aura of a life already lived. The result is a carpet that does not look new, but feels new: rich in depth, emotion, and history.
